'Delighted' Findlay Curtis aiming to cement place in team after Ibrox goal
The 18-year-old opened the scoring in Tuesday night's Champions League qualifier before Djeidi Gassama grabbed the second in a 2-0 victory.
After the game Curtis received some congratulatory words of wisdom from none other than Sir Alex Ferguson and has described the whole experience as a 'dream come true'.
He said: 'I am just absolutely delighted to win 2-0 and take that lead over to Athens, but it's only half-time in the tie and we are looking forward to the next game.
'He (Alex Ferguson) just congratulated me on my goal, and to come from a legend like that I'll take it, and it's just another dream come true to play in a Champions League qualifier for this club.
'I thought we started well in the first ten minutes, then there was a 10-15 minutes after that when it got a bit sloppy. We got in at half-time and had a chat about that, then we came back out for the second-half and I think we changed that.'
The teenager is now hungry to make more memories and cement himself as a first-team regular, although he is aware of how difficult that will be and how much hard work is needed as he looks to impress Russell Martin.
He continued: 'When I scored, I just felt on top of the world. I've been here since I was six years old, and I'm just delighted.
'Football is a difficult sport and it's like pushing other people out the way (to play regularly) and I'm here to do that, but there is a lot of competition in that dressing room so I'll need to keep working my hardest to start more games.
'It will always be down to the manager, whoever he picks in the starting 11, whether that's on Saturday or in Athens, I'll just keep working hard in training and hopefully perform when I get the chance.'
Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News
Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
South Wales Guardian
4 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
She's amazing – Chloe Kelly thanks Sarina Wiegman for ‘giving her hope'
The Lionesses, defending the crown they won three summers ago in the Wembley final, made it a hat-trick of knockout-round comebacks on Sunday night after Alessia Russo cancelled out Arsenal team-mate Mariona Caldentey's opener to ultimately force a shootout. Substitute Kelly – who netted the extra-time winner in the Euro 2022 final – cooly converted after Hannah Hampton made two spectacular saves and Salma Paralluelo missed, writing more personal history and a satisfying ending to a fairy-tale 2025, one that began with the 27-year-old doubting if she would even make this squad. Made for the big moments ✨ — Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 27, 2025 'She's amazing,' said Kelly, asked about a coach who has now led teams to three consecutive European trophies. 'She is an incredible woman. What she's done for this country, we should all be so grateful. What she has done for me individually, she gave me hope when I probably didn't have any, and she gave me an opportunity to represent my country again.' At the beginning of this year, Kelly was still at Manchester City, lacking playing time, and so unhappy that she took to social media to express her wish to leave the club and a situation she shared at the time had 'a huge impact on not only my career but my mental wellbeing', even considering whether or not she wanted to stay in the game. Kelly was left out of Sarina Wiegman's first squad due to a lack of minutes after securing a deadline-day loan move to Arsenal but was called up as an injury replacement in February and has enjoyed revelatory tournament, cementing herself as the most superlative of English super-subs. 'There were a lot of tears at full time,' said Kelly, 'Especially when I saw my family, because they are the people that got me through those dark moments and I am so grateful to be out the back end. If that's a story to tell someone who might be experiencing the same, then tough times don't last. 'Right around the corner was the Champions League final, I won that, and now a Euros final. 'So thank you to everyone who wrote me off. I'm grateful.' Kelly was rewarded with a permanent deal at Arsenal after her impressive loan spell. She added: 'I knew that I had to get game time, and representing England is never a given,' said Kelly. 'But what (Sarina) has done for the women's game, not just in England, but in the Netherlands, the whole women's game, she's taken it to another level.' It was Kelly's cross that teed up Russo for the 57th-minute equaliser on Sunday, and it was her deliveries that allowed Lucy Bronze and Michelle Agyemang to level late in their quarter-final with Sweden, ultimately setting up their first dramatic shootout. Kelly's composed spot-kick was an anomaly in that error-strewn afair, and – though she revealed after Sunday's trophy lift that she had missed three penalties in training – she stepped up and fired home with the same remarkable composure again in the final, once again bearing the weight of England's expectations. Asked if Kelly's coolness was even coachable, Wiegman said: 'I think it's a little bit of both. It says something about the team environment and it says a lot about her character. Everyone brings something different, and she brings this.' Wiegman added: 'Every player has their own story, and I think every story is incredible on its own, but for her most of the stories are out in the open. 'I'm so happy for her. She has been fighting to come back and be at her highest level. She just wanted to take that penalty and celebrate and dance, but to be able to score that penalty under that pressure is very impressive.'
Powys County Times
5 hours ago
- Powys County Times
She's amazing – Chloe Kelly thanks Sarina Wiegman for ‘giving her hope'
Chloe Kelly thanked her detractors and said England boss Sarina Wiegman 'gave me hope when I didn't have any' after she fired home the winning penalty in their Euro 2025 final triumph over Spain in Switzerland. The Lionesses, defending the crown they won three summers ago in the Wembley final, made it a hat-trick of knockout-round comebacks on Sunday night after Alessia Russo cancelled out Arsenal team-mate Mariona Caldentey's opener to ultimately force a shootout. Substitute Kelly – who netted the extra-time winner in the Euro 2022 final – cooly converted after Hannah Hampton made two spectacular saves and Salma Paralluelo missed, writing more personal history and a satisfying ending to a fairy-tale 2025, one that began with the 27-year-old doubting if she would even make this squad. Made for the big moments ✨ — Lionesses (@Lionesses) July 27, 2025 'She's amazing,' said Kelly, asked about a coach who has now led teams to three consecutive European trophies. 'She is an incredible woman. What she's done for this country, we should all be so grateful. What she has done for me individually, she gave me hope when I probably didn't have any, and she gave me an opportunity to represent my country again.' At the beginning of this year, Kelly was still at Manchester City, lacking playing time, and so unhappy that she took to social media to express her wish to leave the club and a situation she shared at the time had 'a huge impact on not only my career but my mental wellbeing', even considering whether or not she wanted to stay in the game. Kelly was left out of Sarina Wiegman's first squad due to a lack of minutes after securing a deadline-day loan move to Arsenal but was called up as an injury replacement in February and has enjoyed revelatory tournament, cementing herself as the most superlative of English super-subs. 'There were a lot of tears at full time,' said Kelly, 'Especially when I saw my family, because they are the people that got me through those dark moments and I am so grateful to be out the back end. If that's a story to tell someone who might be experiencing the same, then tough times don't last. 'Right around the corner was the Champions League final, I won that, and now a Euros final. 'So thank you to everyone who wrote me off. I'm grateful.' Kelly was rewarded with a permanent deal at Arsenal after her impressive loan spell. She added: 'I knew that I had to get game time, and representing England is never a given,' said Kelly. 'But what (Sarina) has done for the women's game, not just in England, but in the Netherlands, the whole women's game, she's taken it to another level.' It was Kelly's cross that teed up Russo for the 57th-minute equaliser on Sunday, and it was her deliveries that allowed Lucy Bronze and Michelle Agyemang to level late in their quarter-final with Sweden, ultimately setting up their first dramatic shootout. Kelly's composed spot-kick was an anomaly in that error-strewn afair, and – though she revealed after Sunday's trophy lift that she had missed three penalties in training – she stepped up and fired home with the same remarkable composure again in the final, once again bearing the weight of England's expectations. Asked if Kelly's coolness was even coachable, Wiegman said: 'I think it's a little bit of both. It says something about the team environment and it says a lot about her character. Everyone brings something different, and she brings this.' Wiegman added: 'Every player has their own story, and I think every story is incredible on its own, but for her most of the stories are out in the open. 'I'm so happy for her. She has been fighting to come back and be at her highest level. She just wanted to take that penalty and celebrate and dance, but to be able to score that penalty under that pressure is very impressive.'
Scottish Sun
5 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
Celtic ‘in the mix' to sign Manchester City starlet who's started in UCL but ‘face competition from Championship sides'
CELTIC boss Brendan Rodgers urged his board to make more new signings after their 5-1 friendly defeat to Ajax. And the Hoops are reportedly looking to add defensive reinforcements from the top of the English Premier League. Advertisement 3 Brendan Rodgers has revealed he wants more signings at Celtic this summer Credit: Alamy 3 The Hoops have been linked with the loan signing of a Manchester City youth team captain Credit: Getty 3 Jahmai Simpson-Pusey made his first-team debut for City last season Credit: Getty A new report from CeltsAreHere says Celtic have made a loan offer to Manchester City for Jahmai Simpson-Pusey. Simpson-Pusey made his first City appearance against the Hoops last summer, starting in a friendly in North Carolina which Celts won 4-3. The centre-back made his senior debut last season too and played six times in total for Pep Guardiola's side, including starts in the Premier League and Champions League. Those starts came during a difficult spell for City though and included a 4-1 defeat to Sporting CP, with Simpson-Pusey returning to the club's academy team for the last few months of the campaign. Advertisement The 19-year-old ended up being named Premier League 2 Player of the Year as he captained City to the title, and now reportedly wants to test himself back in senior football. The report claims that Celts will face competition from the English Championship for Simpson-Pusey, but that their status as a European side who will be competing for titles could make them favourites for his signature. It's also reported that the Manchester native will be the one to decide his destination for the 25/26 season. Rodgers has already seen central defenders Maik Nawrocki and Gustaf Lagerbielke move on this summer, with Stephen Walsh possibly also on the way out. Advertisement Simpson-Pusey would be the latest in a line of players to star for both the Hoops and City. The 2000s saw the likes of Craig Bellamy, Georgios Samaras and Willo Flood feature for both sides. Shock scenes as Celtic and Ajax fans clash during Como Cup friendly tournament in Italy City's 2008 takeover and subsequent success meant that many of the ex-Blues to play for Celtic in the 2010s were younger players sent to cut their teeth north of the border. Amongst them were stars such as Scott Sinclair, Patrick Roberts and Jeremie Frimpong. Advertisement Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page
